Bay Stage welcomes wide array of entertainers

The Solano County Fair’s Bay Stage, presented by KUIC, is full of nonstop entertainment all day, every day of the fair. In addition to the Talent Competition on Friday night, the Solano Stars! Vocal Competition on Saturday night and the nightly karaoke party, here are just a few of the acts that will be entertaining fairgoers this year.

The Steve Bayner Hypnotist Show

Back by popular demand, The Steve Bayner Hypnotist Show is one of the most sought after, successful shows of its kind. Each year, Bayner performs before millions of people. His show has been performed all over the United States as well as abroad.

Bayner’s talents have been featured in newspapers, magazines, television and radio. He’s also been the star of his own cable television show and is currently working on the production of his own reality television show, “Steve Bayner’s World of Hypnosis.”

Audience participation is key to each show’s success with selected audience members becoming the stars of the show. Every show has its own personality and humor, reflecting the uniqueness of the individuals in the audience.

Bayner performs two one-hour-long shows every night of the fair. See schedule for show times as they vary with each day.

Voltones

The Voltones take the stage on the fair’s opening day with hometown grooves sure to get everyone up on their feet.

Guitarist/lead vocalist Dave Harris formed the Vallejo-based Voltones more than 20 years ago. Bassist and occasional vocalist John Gajan anchors the rhythm section along with drummer extraordinaire Joel Anderson, who also brings serious vocal chops to this trio along with a rock-solid backbeat.

The Voltones combine established rock cover favorites, reverb-drenched West Coast “surf” classics, and evocative, melodic originals into an upbeat driving style they refer to as “West-Coast retro-rock” – perfect for capturing that summer feeling.

The Voltones perform from 5 to 5:50 p.m. Wednesday, July 30.

Too Much Fiction

The band Too Much Fiction will rock the Bay Stage on the fair’s second day with their high-energy performance.

Too Much Fiction is the result of years of collaboration between guitarist Kevin Collins and drummer Pat Stanley. Since 1993, this duo has remained the tight nucleus at the center of a seemingly ever-evolving rotation of talented musicians. Their partnership has led the band through various phases, at times more pop, jazz, alternative or rock, all the while staying true to their vision of what defines good music and a good band.

Collins and Stanley have once again put together a new version of the band as a vehicle to showcase their music. Too Much Fiction also features longtime band member Ron VanH on electric and acoustic guitar and vocalist Tossa as the front-person and “face” of the band.

Too Much Fiction performs original material that has been described as jazzy, alternative and modern rock. The music has been compared to bands ranging from Sarah McLachlan to The Police to Missing Persons to The Sundays, and each member brings a wide, diverse range of influences to the mix.

Too Much Fiction performs from 3:30 to 4:20 p.m. Thursday, July 31.

The Best Intentions

The Best Intentions will perform their repertoire of Motown classics, also on the second day of this year’s fair.

Founded 12 years ago by Rodney James, Jeffery Bashir and Bilal M., The Best Intentions are an unforgettable experience of the great Motown acts of the 1960s, ‘70s and ‘80s featuring dynamic tributes to The Temptations, The Four Tops, Smokey & The Miracles, Gladys Knight & The Pips, The Spinners and The Dells, to name just a few.

You can’t resist dancing to these fabulous oldies! This group showcases six gentlemen with many years of combined experience in the music and entertainment industry, performing with big-name stars and at venues all across the U.S. and Canada.

The Best Intentions perform from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, July 31.

Foreign Frontiers

The third day of this year’s Solano County Fair brings the indie-rock band Foreign Frontiers to the Bay Stage.

Formed in Vallejo in 2009, current band members include Phinehas Spielman (lead vocals), Byron Mayhew (guitar), Jonathan Cirelli (guitar), Logan Cruz (drums) and Morgan Lasater (bass). Three of the original members (Cirelli, Mayhew and Spielman) met each other through a home-school group at a very young age, but it wasn’t until 2009 that they decided to form a cover band with their longtime friends Riley Finley (bass) and Adrian Smith (drums) under the name The Hot-List.

After playing a few small shows in garages and at parties, band members decided to start writing their own music and in 2010. The band debuted its first original song, “Rouge,” to a group of unsuspecting home-schoolers.

After a few years, the band began to acquire a repertoire of new songs that didn’t fit the band’s juvenile name of The Hot-List and after going through a “hatful” of names, they decided to change their name to Foreign Frontiers in 2013.

The lineup changed with the name, with Adrian Smith leaving the band and being replaced by Logan Cruz on drums. Riley Finley went on hiatus to pursue his education at the University of California, Davis and was replaced the next year by Morgan Lasater. After the lineup change, the band began playing more shows around the Bay Area and Smith rejoined the band part-time to play the djembe and sing backup harmonies. This year, the band is looking forward to playing bigger venues and recording their first EP with producer, Sean Lasater.

Foreign Frontiers perform from 3 to 3:50 p.m. Friday, Aug. 1.

Thirstbusters

Berkeley natives the Thirstbusters take the stage the fourth day of the fair to perform their original pop-rock hits.

Band members Chase Jackson, Forrest Mitchell and Zach Sorgen met in seventh grade where they performed for the first time with a rendition of “Purple Haze” for a middle school event. They met their fourth band member, Ryan Thomas, at Berkeley High School and immediately hit it off. One day after jazz ensemble they were jamming on some pop, and Jackson yells “Guys! We’re making a band!” and the rest is history.

They recorded their first album as a one-room live recording with no producer or professional guidance and shocked themselves with how well it turned out. After heading off to different colleges in New York, Los Angeles and Ohio, they reunited over winter break and produced a music video, “So There,” with Sorgen’s sister as writer/director.

A couple of weeks after making “So There,” they got an email from Disney that the network wanted to air it for a while. Shortly after that, they got a call from their soon-to-be managers and put together the rest of their team, made a few more music videos and had songs featured in a couple of movies.

They met playing jazz and try to incorporate those dynamics/textures into their pop-rock songs. People compare them to Coldplay, John Mayer, Dave Matthews, Maroon 5 and U2, but rather than picking just one direction to focus on for their new album, they decided to embrace the eclectic and just write songs that they love.

Thirstbusters perform from noon to 12:50 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 2.

Raymond Coats

Gospel artist Raymond Coats will bring his soulful sounds to the Bay Stage for the fair’s closing day.

Coats began his career at the age of 12 singing bass/baritone in his church choir with The Coats Singers in San Francisco. He went on to engage in a successful entertaining career and has performed for such dignitaries as the Honorable Willie Brown, mayor of San Francisco, and Danny Glover, performer extraordinaire. Coats took part in the Michael Jackson video “Cry,” performed internationally in Japan, and has performed as the front man for various bands including Raw Soul, The Elegants, The Performers, Cordial, Finesse and Soul Commitment.

Raymond Coats performs from 1 to 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 3.

Urban Bushmen

The Bay Stage also welcomes the Urban Bushmen Band on the fair’s closing day for a soulful, crowd-pleasing performance.

The Urban Bushmen Band is a Northern California rhythm and blues group ready to entertain. The high-energy, crowd-pleasing act knows how to get people up on their feet and keep them moving. Founded by young blues/funk guitarist Kenny Wilson, the Urban Bushmen Band covers classic blues, R&B and neo-soul. Whether it’s fan-favorite grooves by other well-known groups, or music of their own, the band pulsates with tight arrangements.